The University of Oklahoma Board of Regents, which serves as the governing body for Rogers State University, this week approved RSU’s 2015-16 budget, which includes a 4.98 percent increase in tuition and mandatory fees.
The increase, which is in line with other Oklahoma regional universities, will mean state residents taking 15 semester credit hours at RSU would see a per semester increase of $142.50 when compared with last year’s rates. The OU Board of Regents approved the increase during its meeting Wednesday, and the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education are slated to consider the increase during its meeting Thursday.
The tuition and fee adjustment was necessary due to increases in mandatory operating costs coupled with a 3.5 percent decrease in RSU’s state funding, which brought the university’s state allocation to its lowest point since 2005-06. The combination of increased mandatory costs and reduced state funding left the university with about a $1 million revenue shortfall.
In addition to the tuition adjustment, RSU has initiated a number of cost savings initiatives this year, including closing its Innovation Center, eliminating two staff positions and reducing travel and supply expenditures.
RSU President Dr. Larry Rice said officials from across the university have been working to respond to the reduced state appropriation, including formation of a budget advisory committee this spring that provided broad input on resource allocation for the coming year. University officials also met with the RSU Student Government Association to discuss the planned tuition and fee increase.
“The national trend of reduced higher education funding remains one of the most critical issues facing college administrators today,” Rice said. “At RSU, we will continue to find ways to be more efficient in our operations, while implementing cost control measures that allow RSU to remain one of the best values in higher education.”
As an educational system, Oklahoma has been recognized as one of the nation’s most affordable states for higher education with RSU and several other state regional universities noted as having among the nation’s lowest in-state tuition rates.
To offset rising tuition costs, the university remains committed to providing financial aid for students, both through institutional support and fundraising efforts among the university’s alumni and friends. The 2015-16 RSU budget includes a $136,000 increase in scholarships to $4.77 million, which is a 3 percent increase from the previous year. Scholarships and tuition waivers represent 13.8 percent of the FY2016 budget.
The RSU Foundation continues to increase its efforts to raise funds for scholarships and endowments, successfully raising more money to support students and university operations. Through the efforts of the RSU Foundation and the RSU financial aid office, more than 33 percent of RSU students last year were able to graduate without taking out student loans.
Enrollment is currently underway for the fall semester on the RSU campuses in Claremore, Bartlesville and Pryor. Classes begin on Aug. 17. To enroll, or get more information, call 918-343-7777 or 1-800-256-7511 or visit www.rsu.edu.